When manufacturing a sink for commercial applications, there are many construction options. The combination of engineering expertise, skilled long term production employees, and the latest in manufacturing equipment allows EMI Industries to select the best way to do each of the many small details that go into a commercial,
NSF listed sink. Below are some images to give you a better picture of the various ways a
sink can be constructed. On the left you will see a competitors sink, and on the right you will see a sink designed by
EMI Industries.
1.) NSF requires a minimum of a 1/8th inch radius on all vertical corners for ease of cleaning. The competitors sink did not use sufficient weld material to allow the corner to be ground to meet this measure.

OTHER OURS
All four corners need to have filler wire added to the vertical weld so that the weld radius measures a minimum of 1/8". We use filler wire to build this area up, then a rotating file to shape the radius.
2.) When welding the bowls into the sink/drain board deck, the juncture must be polished. Correct and careful polishing of welds makes the difference between a sink that is just functional and one that imparts a first quality image. This is a time consuming but a very important step.
OTHER OURS
The drain boards and back splash of the left sink looks scratched instead of polished. Regraining the entire adjacent surface with a course grinding tool is a quick, but less visually satisfying means for blending in welded seams. Careful polishing only the junction area with progressively finer tools allows the natural beauty of the stainless to flow uninterrupted as in the photo on the right.
3.) Even though the back of the splash will likely never be seen once the sink is installed and caulked to the wall, we take the time to be sure there are no sharp exposed weld slag and we spray the area to add an additional protective coating.
OTHER OURS
4.) These multi-bowl sinks have a full front ‘skirt' panel covering the bowls. NSF requires this or strips of stainless top to bottom at the juncture points of the sink bowls. A full skirt such as this is more expensive but provides the user with a singe smooth solid surface that can be easily cleaned. In this instance the competitor neglected to seal the top of the skirt with an NSF (or any) caulk. This would not have passed an NSF inspection.
OTHER OURS
The seam where the top edge of the skirt meets the bottom of the deck needs to be caulked with silver, NSF approved sealant as shown in the photo of our sink. We caulk the entire seam with silver, NSF approved sealant.
5.) Like the front, the seams between the bowls on the back and bottom must also be sealed. Caulk filler is sufficient here. Again, the other sink with no caulking in either place and would not have passed NSF.
OTHER OURS
The seam where the bowls meet at the rear of the sink needs to be caulked. We caulk the entire seam with silver, NSF approved sealant.
There are many standard sinks available to foodservice dealers that have details dictated by cost rather than what will serve the customer over the long haul and make it easy to clean. We make and sell quality, which is the best value.